Category Archives: Transgender

Navigating the landscape: Roles, perspectives, and experiences of psychologists supporting gender diverse children and young people in school settings (2023)

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Authors: Gracie New-Brown, Cora Sargeant and Sarah Wright
Published: 2023
Publication: International Journal of Transgender Health

Purpose. This review aimed to explore and synthesize the perspectives and experiences of school-based psychological professionals providing support to gender diverse CYP across the world, to foreground the voices of those with relevant experience and support future practice. Methods. A systematic review of five databases (PsychINFO, CINAHL, ERIC, SCOPUS and PROQUEST dissertations and theses) was performed between September and November 2022. Articles were included if they contained qualitative, primary research data representing the voice of at least one school-based psychological professional with experience working with gender diverse children and young people. Articles were excluded if they did not contain primary research data, were quantitative, related to non-school based psychologists or focussed on participant views in the absence of direct experience working with gender diverse pupils. Articles were thematically summarized and organized into a data extraction table. Results. Eighteen studies were identified for review, including 11 studies based in the USA, five in the UK, one in Australia and one in Cyprus. The voices of school-based professionals, including school counselors, school psychologists, trainee and qualified educational psychologists, were represented. The themes created highlighted the importance of the environment in which psychologists were working, the reliance on their own views and values to guide their work in the absence of clear guidance, the role psychologists saw they had to advocate for gender diverse CYP, as well as barriers and systems they were fighting against. Conclusion. The review highlighted the need for psychologists to advocate for gender diverse children and young people, in an often non-inclusive environment where there was a need to work systemically with schools. Future research is needed to explore young people’s experiences of the support that they are receiving and would like to receive.

New-Brown, G., Sargeant, C., & Wright, S. (2023). Navigating the landscape: Roles, perspectives, and experiences of psychologists supporting gender diverse children and young people in school settings. International Journal of Transgender Health, 25(1), 102–122. https://doi.org/10.1080/26895269.2023.2291712

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University of Southampton Psychology Post Graduate Research Conference – presentations

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The Southampton PGR conference recently concluded – the ninth psychology conference but the very first to be carried out online. We were delighted by (and very proud of) the contributions of the Ed Psych Trainees to the conference, which included Year 2 research posters, Year 3 thesis presentations and two members of the Year 2 cohort – Sophie Smith and Amber Newell – sitting on the four person conference planning committee (and what an incredible job they did under these exceptional circumstances).

Please find below two great examples of the Ed Psych thesis presentations, presented by Caroline Bird, Jesvir Dhillon, and Annie McGowan:

Caroline Bird: Attributions of Challenging Behaviour from Looked After Children

Jesvir Dhillon A qualitative exploration of facilitators and adolescents experiences of a school-based iCBT

Annie McGowan: Exploration of the Views and Experiences of Transgender Youth in Secondary Education

What beliefs influence children and young people’s attitudes towards the transgender population? (2020)

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Authors: Jenna Read, Cora Sargeant and Sarah Wright
Published: 2020
Publication: Educational and Child Psychology

Aims: This review aims to identify and explore the specific beliefs that influence children and young people’s (CYP’s) attitudes towards the transgender population.
Method: A systematic review of the literature was undertaken and a total of 14 studies were included in the review. The review included studies from the United States, Europe, and Asia. Each study was appraised using Gough’s (2007) Weight of Evidence Framework and awarded a quality assurance rating of low, medium, or high quality.
Findings: The review identified three sets of beliefs that appear to influence CYP’s attitudes towards the transgender population: Heteronormativity, conservatism and gender essentialism. Gender differences in beliefs were found to influence attitudes towards the transgender population as a whole and towards Male-to-Female (MtF) individuals and Female-to-Male (FtM) individuals.
Limitations: The key limitation within this review is that the mechanisms through which beliefs influence CYP attitudes are hypothetical. Further insight using qualitative approaches would deepen the understanding of the underpinnings of attitudes towards the transgender population, particularly transprejudice. A variety of measures were used across the included studies which limits the comparability
of the finding and conclusions drawn
Conclusions: This review identified three sets of beliefs that influence attitudes towards the transgender population. These beliefs represent a traditional, binary model of gender that contrasts with the experiences of gender-diverse populations. A more inclusive model of gender is proposed whereby acceptance, diversity and belonging are promoted.

Read, J., Sargeant, C. & Wright, S. (2020) What beliefs influence children and young people’s attitudes towards the transgender population? Educational and Child Psychology, (37)1, 11-36.

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